NASCAR will have to try again Monday to hold its official season opener after postponing the Daytona 500 due to rain.
The green flag for the race — considered NASCAR’s Super Bowl — was originally scheduled to wave shortly after 3 p.m. ET Sunday, but rain showers hit the track in Daytona Beach, Fla.
The race is rescheduled for 4 p.m. ET on FOX on Monday.
Inclement weather has been an ongoing hurdle for NASCAR this weekend, as the sanctioning body already moved its lower-level Xfinity Series race from 5 p.m. ET Saturday to 11 a.m. ET Monday due to rain. The Daytona 500 is set to run at Daytona International Speedway following the conclusion of the Xfinity race. It will be the first-ever Monday doubleheader at Daytona.
NEWS: The #DAYTONA500 has been postponed to Monday at 4 p.m. ET due to inclement weather.
Watch The Great American Race on FOX or listen on @MRNRadio and @SiriusXMNASCAR Radio. pic.twitter.com/JZ4du5USi1
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) February 18, 2024
NASCAR also moved its fourth-tier series ARCA race from Saturday afternoon to Friday night to complete the race without the threat of rain.
As of Sunday morning, Monday’s forecast called for partly sunny and breezy conditions with an eight percent chance of precipitation in the afternoon, according to AccuWeather.
This isn’t the first time in recent years that the Daytona 500 has been delayed for rain. The 2020 race was postponed a day and the 2021 event finished late, both due to weather-related delays.
Required reading
(Photo: Jared C. Tilton / Getty Images)
